f you ask me, avocados go with any food, so I try to eat at least one per day. They are also my favorite food. I enrich my morning smoothie with half an avocado and my salad at dinner with the other half. And when I get cravings for nachos, I prepare homemade guacamole.
After finishing an avocado, I used to throw away the seed. Now I found out that avocado seeds have many health benefits and have been used in traditional medicine for a very long time.
Is It Safe To Eat Avocado Seeds?
While some fruit seeds contain the toxic chemical cyanide (like cherry seeds, plum seeds and apricot seed) that can cause nausea, dizziness and in some cases death, avocado seeds don’t have that effect. They contain mildly toxic tannins and only if you eat several seeds you’d notice side effects. In 2013 several researchers published their study in the Scientific World Journal in which they stated that avocado seed extract is not toxic and it is safe for consumption.
5 Health Benefits of Eating Avocado Seeds
Avocados are rich with folate, vitamin B, healthy fats and nutrients. They are a wellspring of bioactive phytochemicals.
They have fatty acids, triterpenes, phytosterols, and glucosides from abscisic acid. 70 % of the avocado antioxidant properties are contained in the seed. Proanthocyanidins and flavonoids are two of the antioxidant phytochemicals avocado seeds contain. They are also among the best sources of soluble fiber.
How can avocado seeds benefit you?
Among other health benefits, avocado seeds have antifungal, antibiotic, antimicrobial, insecticidal, larvicidal, amoebicidal, giardicidal, hypolipidemic and antihypertensive characteristics.
Helps fight cancer
The powerful antioxidants in avocado seeds called flavonols (and numerous other as well) have anti-tumor properties. Researchers from the University of Antiqua in Medellin discovered that avocado seeds extract made leukemia cells to self-destroy and they published their discovery in the journal Pharmaceutical biology.
A recent study published in the journalCancer Research showed that avocation B, a substance found in the avocado seeds, can fight acute myeloid leukemia cells. In the study, 800 natural products were tested against the human acute myeloid leukemia cells.
Benefits heart disease patients
A study from the journal Plant Foods for Human Nutrition in 2012, showed that avocado seed flour decreased the cholesterol and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels in mice. It was also pointed out that avocado seeds prevent arterial plaque formation.
The fiber in avocado seeds is connected with decreased cholesterol. The fiber will attach itself on the cholesterol in the intestines and stop the absorption. Some other researches have shown that these seeds help with high cholesterol and hypertension. It also prevents inflammation and diabetes.
Digestive benefits
Avocado seeds improve your digestion as they contain antioxidants and fiber. Digestive issues like gastric ulcers, severe diarrhea, acute diarrhea, etc. were treated with avocado seeds by South Americans.
Strengthens the immune system
A strong immune system can protect the body from diseases. The seeds and skins of the avocado have high contents of antioxidants, such as procyanidins and catehchins. Their anti-inflammatory characteristics alleviate stiffness, reduce swelling, joint pain, diseases and boost the immunity and protect from colds and flus.
Avocado seeds extract can prevent pathogens like candida and other fungi (connected to weak immune system), this was a discovery from an in-vitro study, published in the journal Revista de SociedadeBrasiliera de Medicina Tropical in 2009.
Helps reduce wrinkles
Avocado seed oil increases collagen in the skin, thus reducing wrinkles. This oil is also beneficial for acne flare-ups.
How to Extract Avocado Seed
Remove the seed cleanly by slicing around the pit.
Put the knife tip into the pit, twist and pull easily.
In the end, remove the seed from the knife.
Put the seed in a plastic bag and crush it with some blunt object
Put the crushed seed in your smoothie together with your other favorite ingredients. If your blender is powerful enough, don’t crush the seeds, just add water.
Recipe for the Perfect Avocado Seed Green Goodness Smoothie
Ingredients:
Avocado seed – ½
Avocado – ½
Almond milk or water – 1 cup
Ripe pear – 1
Apple – ½
Organic spinach – 1 cup
Grated ginger – 1 small piece
Directions:
Simply smash the seed and blend all the ingredients together until you get a smooth consistency. Bon apetit!
Here is another green smoothie recipe that contains flaxseed and red leaf lettuce
Ingredients:
Avocado seed – ½
Water or almond milk – 2 ½ cups
Ripe pear – 1
Ripe mango – ½ to ¾
Ground flaxseed – 3 tablespoons
A head of red leaf lettuce – ¾
Directions:
Again, crush the avocado seed and blend the ingredients. Serve over ice.
Other Uses For The Avocado Seed
Besides the above mentioned, the avocado seed has other uses as well, such as:
Guacamole saver: place avocado seed in your guacamole to prevent it from spoiling
Homemade face mask: avocado seeds work as a great exfoliator for your face. Dry the seeds, grind them and add them in your usual homemade facemask.
Avocado seed tea: you just need to boil the seeds for 30 minutes and you will get a great tea..
Natural food additive: these seeds are an excellent food additive because of their antioxidant phytochemicals. In 2011, researchers discovered that the antimicrobial and antioxidant effects of avocado seeds prevent the food from going bad, this study was published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.